Joe Biden created a viral moment when he stepped to the lectern at a campaign event and started playing the hit Spanish song “Despacito” from his phone, but the playing of the song was not entirely unprompted.
The former vice president and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate has a history of playing songs from his phone recorded by artists appearing with him at a campaign event.
“I just have one thing to say. Hang on,” Biden said at his campaign event in Kissimmee, Florida, on Tuesday at an event celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, before holding his phone to a microphone and playing the hit 2017 song.
Clips of the video circulated on social media, making “Despacito” a top trend on Twitter in the United States. The incident prompted mocking from those who accused Biden of pandering to Hispanic and Latino voters as President Trump makes gains among the demographic in polls.
Biden’s playing of the song, though, makes more sense in the context of the event.
Luis Fonsi, the singer who recorded “Despacito,” was one of the people who spoke at the event before Biden. The Puerto Rican singer talked about how his hit song represented “the best of this country, even with the president in the White House trying to divide us.”
“One song, En Español, broke all the barriers across cultures, languages, and ages,” Fonsi said. “‘Despacito’ proved to me that in this country, we will never be defined by our differences, and no matter who is president, Latinos and Latinas will always have a place here.”
.@JoeBiden steps out and starts playing Despacito from his phone. pic.twitter.com/V5lkUBOoCb
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) September 16, 2020
Actress Eva Longoria and singer Ricky Martin were also among those who made brief speeches before Biden took the stage.
Biden, apparently a fan of the song, showed that he had the song on his phone.
“All right!” Biden said while bobbing his head to the song. “I’ll tell you what, if I had the talent of any one of these people, I’d be — I’d be elected president by acclamation.”
This is not the first time that Biden has held his phone up to play a song form a musician joining him at an event.
At a June fundraiser that featured singer-songwriter Willie Nelson, Biden played his song “On the Road Again.” Biden, according to a pool report, noted that he had a lot of Nelson’s songs on his phone.
“I want to introduce him this way,” Biden said as he placed his phone near a microphone pinned to his shirt. “Willie Nelson! We’re glad you’re here, pal,” Biden said, adding that he is “an unadulterated fan” of the musician.
In an August fundraiser that featured singer Carole King, Biden pulled out his phone and said she is “on my playlist, Carole.” Biden then played a song that appeared to be “I Feel The Earth Move” from his phone before King played it herself from the piano. A pool reported observed that Biden uses Apple Music.
During a fundraiser that featured many musicians in May, Biden noted that he had Jimmy Buffett’s song “Come Monday” on his cellphone before the singer played the song for the attendees at the virtual event.
